Apocrypha/Pseudepigrapha

“Locating 4 Ezra: A Consideration of Its Social Setting and Functions,” Journal for the Study of Judaism 28 (1997): 271-93

by Bruce Longenecker

The most likely scenario for the social setting of 4 Ezra is Yavneh, the author being a scribe who gravitated there... more The most likely scenario for the social setting of 4 Ezra is Yavneh, the author being a scribe who gravitated there after a.d. 70. He wrote his apocalypse in the hope of influencing rabbinic leaders who sought to reconsider Jewish piety and practice without recourse to the Temple. He was concerned that (1) the people's confidence in God should be reinforced, despite their sorrow; (2) the people should be instructed in the Law and encouraged to observe it strenuously; and (3) the people should be discouraged from active insurrection and militant revolt, often animated by eschatological speculation.--D.J.H. Abstract Number: NTA42-1998-2-1398

Which Theologies in Conflict? Some Suggestions for a Symptomatic Rereading of 4 Ezra in Light of P. Sacchi's and E.P. Sanders' Contributions to the Study of Early Judaism, with a Final Note on the Hodayot from Qumran and Paul

by Carlos Segovia

Presented at the 6th Enoch Seminar: 2 Baruch - 4 Ezra: 1st Century Jewish Apocalypticism -- Milan, June 26 - July 1, 2011.

4 Ezra sets forth a kind of dialogical retextualization of the idea that salvation is unconditionally granted by God... more 4 Ezra sets forth a kind of dialogical retextualization of the idea that salvation is unconditionally granted by God to his chosen people in order, first, to discuss its accuracy and, second, to dismiss it together with the opposing view according to which salvation in only granted to, even if not self-achieved by, those who have good deeds to their credit. A comparison between 2 Sam 7; 1 Kgs 8:22-26; and 1 Kgs 2:1-4 and 2 Chron 6:12-17 shows that these two competing views--or theologies--can be traced back to the Hebrew Bible. I will also argue that they may be further clarified through a cross-reading of P. Sacchi's and E.P. Sanders' studies. And that the first view can be found again, to one extent or another, in several post-Biblical Jewish texts such as the Hodayot from Qumran and Paul's letters.Yet my main point will be to suggest that, in spite of their different purposes, the author of 4 Ezra might have had in mind Paul's controversial reuse of such view, since 4 Ezra 8:32, 36 seemingly echoes Rom 4:5.

“Some Texts on Enoch in the Armenian Tradition,” in Ancient Near Eastern and other studies in honor of Tsvi Abusch / edited by Jeffrey Stackert, Barbara Nevling Porter, David P. Wright, Bethesda MR: CDL Press, 2010, pp. 517-530.

by Michael Stone

This paper presents the translation of a number of texts from Armenian that deal with the Enoch figure. Some of them... more This paper presents the translation of a number of texts from Armenian that deal with the Enoch figure. Some of them contain traditions that seem to have little to do with 1 Enoch or 2 Enoch, but to come from other sources. In light of recent decades' fuss about Enoch, it is surprising that little attention has been paid to the Enoch figure as it developed in the various Churches and in Rabbinic and later Jewish material. This, of course, may result from the narrow focus of those interested in Judaism of the Second Temple period,

The Figure of David in the Book of Ben Sira

by Geza Xeravits

An Old Testament Pseudepigraphon in Coptic: Yet Another Manuscript from the Sahidic Version of the Testament of Isaac

by Alin Suciu

Review of Heide, Die Testamente Isaaks und Jakobs

by Alessandro Bausi

Review of Martin Heide, Die Testamente Isaaks und Jakobs. Edition und Übersetzung der arabischen und äthiopischen Versionen (Aethiopistische Forschungen Band 56, Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz Verlag, 2000), in “Journal for the Study of Judaism in the Persian, Hellenistic and Roman Period” (Leiden), 34/1 (2003), pp. 86-92.

Apostolic Geography: The Origins and Continuity of a Hagiographic Habit

by Scott Johnson

In *Dumbarton Oaks Papers* 64 (2010) 5–25

Image and Desire in the Wisdom of Solomon (Proofs)

by Jason von Ehrenkrook

Review of: Michael Stone, Ancient Judaism: New Visions and Views

by Juan Carlos Ossandón

Published in Bryn Mawr Classcial Review 2012.03.38

Ezra Begins: 4 Ezra as Prequel and the Making of a Superhero

by Jason Zurawski

Paper to be presented at the Colloquium Biblicum Lovaniense, “Old Testament Pseudepigrapha and the Scriptures,” Leuven, Belgium, July 2012.

One of the most curious aspects of the late first-century Jewish apocalypse 4 Ezra is its depiction of the scribe... more One of the most curious aspects of the late first-century Jewish apocalypse 4 Ezra is its depiction of the scribe Ezra. Nothing in this text seems to cohere with the Ezra we know from earlier texts. The dating is odd. The setting is odd. Ezra himself is odd and almost unrecognizable. He even has another name! While scholars in the past have dabbled in trying to figure out these various curiosities, modern scholars seem to have given up on explaining these mysteries in order to focus on the “larger” issues within the text. But, if we can explain why the author chose to paint Ezra the scribe in such an odd light, we should be able to go a long way in explaining those important issues and the overall purpose of the text.

Here I will argue that the author of 4 Ezra has crafted an “origin story,” the back-story or prequel to the story with which the reader is already familiar. 4 Ezra is a text which describes how Ezra became the Ezra we know—the scribe, the restorer of the temple, the bringer of the Torah. Only by understanding the text in this way are we able to make sense of this odd Ezra. While our name of the text may suggest otherwise, 4 Ezra must be seen as a prequel to the familiar, biblical if you must, story of Ezra. This, more than anything, can explain the dating, the setting, Ezra’s second name, and, ultimately, Ezra’s transformation in the text, from disbelief to belief, from doubter to adherent, from man to superhero.

A study of 1 Peter 3: 18–4: 6. An investigation into the historical background of the doctrine of Christ's descent into Hades

by marietjie du toit

Anatomy of a Cargo Cult: Virginity, Relic Envy, and Hallowed Boxes

by Ryan Byrne

Resurrecting the Brother of Jesus, eds. Ryan Byrne and Bernadette McNary-Zak (University of North Carolina Press, 2009) pp. 137-186

Intertextual Readings of the Psalms in the Dead Sea Scrolls: 4Q160 (Samuel Apocryphon) and Psalm 40

by Alex Jassen

Revue de Qumran 22:3 (2006): 403–30.

Literary and Historical Studies in the Samuel Apocryphon (4Q160)

by Alex Jassen

Journal of Jewish Studies 59:1 (2008): 21–38.

The Book of Enoch and the Ethiopian Manuscript Tradition: New Data

by Ted Erho

Co-authored with Loren Stuckenbruck.  Pages 257-67 in ‘Go Out and Study the Land’ (Judges 18:2): Archaeological, Historical and Textual Studies in Honor of Hanan Eshel.  Edited by Aren M. Maeir, Jodi Magness, and Lawrence H. Schiffman.  Supplements to the Journal for the Study of Judaism 148.  Leiden: Brill, 2011.

4 Ezra’s Evil Heart: A Divine Test in the Agon of an Ordained Two-World Dichotomy

by Jason Zurawski

Paper to be presented at the Society of Biblical Literature International Meeting in Amsterdam, July 25, 2012, Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha group.

4 Ezra’s evil heart must be understood within the text’s concept of a two-world dichotomy. In fact, it seems that it... more 4 Ezra’s evil heart must be understood within the text’s concept of a two-world dichotomy. In fact, it seems that it is the key component in distinguishing this world from the world to come. Throughout the text, the author makes clear that God is in total control of the world, and the situation humanity finds itself in this world, while seemingly discordant, is actually part of the purpose for which God created the mortal cosmos. Prior to the creation of this world, God created the world to come, the final judgment, and all other eschatological components and fixed the final age of the temporary world. While Adam’s sin and the sinfulness of those after him directly affected their own personal fate, their sins did not bring about a fundamental change in God’s plans. The inheritance of the righteous was, from the beginning, the world to come.
This world, then, is in essence a test or an agon, a contest, and it is precisely in relation to this test where we see the purpose of the evil heart. The cor malignum is to the individual what this world is to all of humanity. The evil heart was designed as a test for humanity, a test which Adam and most after him failed.  According to the author, God fashioned this mortal, temporary world as purposefully difficult and dangerous because the true world is a prize reserved only for the very best. The purpose of the evil heart is to select the best. This is an extreme result from an author attempting to deal with the most tragic of situations. It may not be satisfying to the modern reader, but it is nevertheless an innovative solution the ever-heightening question of theodicy at the end of the first century.

L’apport de la philologie araméenne et l’interprétation des archaïsmes linguistiques pour la datation des textes araméens de Qumrân

by PD Dr. Ursula Schattner-Rieser

in : K. Berthelot/D. Stoekl Ben Ezra (Hg.), Aramaica Qumranica: The Aix en Provence Colloquium on the Aramaic Dead Sea Scrolls, STDJ, Brill, Leiden 2010, 101-123.

THE PROTAGONIST-CATALOGUES OF THE APOCRYPHAL ACTS OF APOSTLES IN THE COPTIC MANICHAICA –– A RE-ASSESSMENT OF THE EVIDENCE

by Gábor Kósa

Bechtold E. and Gulyás A. and Hasznos A. (eds.) 2011. From Illahun to Djeme. Papers Presented in Honour of Ulrich Luft. Oxford: Archaeopress, 107–119.

Suciu Thomassen Offprint

by Alin Suciu

I recently edited together with Einar Thomassen a parchment folio owned by the Norwegian collector Martin Schøyen. The Schøyen leaf (MS 1991) was immediately followed in the codex by another dismembered fragment which ended up in the Bibliothèque Nationale in Paris. They seem to belong to an unknown apocryphal writing, although the echoes it contains of fifth century Christological debates should warn against regarding it as an early document.

"Reading Tobit Backwards and Forwards: In Search of Lost Halakhah"

by Mark Christian

Henoch 28, no. 1 (2006): 63-96.